Zitterbewegung induced by spin and pseudospin precession in thin topological insulator film

Abstract

In this report, we investigated the Zitterbewegung(ZB) of electron wave packet in a topological insulator thin film with hybridized surface states [1,2,3]. In the framework of spin force picture, we qualitatively showed that the ZB can result from either the precession of electron spin or that of the pseudo-spin (which accounts for the tunneling between two surfaces). By tuning the tunnel coupling or by introducing an in-plane magnetic field [1,2], we can control the energy band structure and the spin dynamics, which in turn controls the ZB.